In response to the inability of conventional toll collection means to meet the demands created by increased highway traffic, automated toll facilities that provide improved toll collection methods and systems have been proposed and are being implemented. These electronic toll collection systems eliminate the manual transactions of conventional toll collection means through the use of radio transmitters and receivers that perform the necessary transactions as a vehicle travels through the automated toll booth. For example, U.S. Letters Pat. No. 7,224,291 (Hassett), which is assigned to the same assignee as this invention, discloses a system for automatic collection of tolls includes an in-vehicle toll processor (e.g., an RFID transponder or tag) having memory for storing a toll-money-available quantity purchased by the user, and a toll-facility-identification site that transmits a toll-facility-identifier signal indicating the identity of the upcoming toll facility. As the vehicle approaches the identification site, the in-vehicle processor receives the identifier signal and calculates the toll to be debited. When the vehicle passes through the toll facility, the in-vehicle processor transmits its identity, its net balance and the toll, which it debits from an account balance. The in-vehicle processor may increment a low balance, in which case it transmits information which is relayed to a central system for billing. Note that all references cited herein are incorporated by reference.
In some electronic toll collection applications, it would be desirable to vary the information transmitted by the RFID tag based on vehicle conditions. One example is a toll road with high occupancy toll (HOT/HOV) lanes. Highway administrations have created incentives for drivers to carpool by assigning differing toll amounts to single person vehicles versus multiple person vehicles and by allowing multiple person vehicles in lanes reserved for such vehicles. Presently, there are not available RFID tags for automated toll collection that provide for adjusting the data message sent by the tag. Therefore a need exists for a vehicle RFID tag that allows the driver to manually change the data sent by the tag to the toll system.